I was initially drawn to this book because it was about forbidden elemental-based magic. By all accounts, Bree was a normal child brought up by her father, having been told that her mother died in childbirth, and she was kept ignorant of her father's complicated past. Bree and her father ran a pub or a inn in some backwater territory far from the palace and the king's influence. But one day people came looking for her father, and spirited them both away tot he palace to face the king and his judgement.

While the beginning was slow to start with, once the main character, Bree, reached the palace, I began to enjoy it. I quite liked Bree as a character. I found her decisions were largely sound - or if not sound, at least rationally thought through. She was courageous, insightful, and understood that even if she didn't know the game, she knew when she was being played. She was feisty, but mostly in her thoughts, being able to control her reactions to provocation. She seemed very much like a regular person. She wasn't too stupid and she definitely wasn't arrogant. As part of her character arc, she grew to understand how to manipulate others, which I really liked.

I really enjoyed the middle section of the book as Bree settled into her life at court, the manipulation from the king who seemed to enjoy toying with her, and forming meaningful relationships with both the Prince and Princess. The dynamics between characters were well-crafted, with one friendship blossoming from adversaries to close friends in a believable way, as the story gained momentum. I also found that the very chaste romance was understandable as well, even if it lacked heat.

I understand that authors - especially indie authors - write cliffhangers with nothing resolved specifically to sell future books in the series. I get that, I understand the purpose of cliffhangers. But I also recognise good and bad cliffhangers. I grew up reading Animorphs, and there is no cliffhanger that can hurt as much as having the book series you spent literally 5 years of your life  reading finish on an unresolved cliffhanger. I had read some very good cliffhangers and some cliffhangers that turned out to be complete and utter bullshit. My personal preference is for a  'breadcumb' - where all the conflicts are resolved but a new conflict is introduced before the end of the book. The ending to this book, however, was a bad cliffhanger. And it was such a bad cliffhanger because I read it, and then a couple of days later I found myself wondering if I had finished the book. The ending cuts off at a really bad place, leaving things admittedly yes in high tension but also and most importantly unresolved. It is the classic definition of a TV serial cliffhanger, where the characters are left hanging on the edge of a cliff and 'tune in next time!' to see how they get out of it. But it was such an unremarkable version of this type of cliffhanger that I simply couldn't remember it. I felt no satisfaction or any kind of closure upon finishing the book. I forgot that I had finished it. I'm pretty sure that's a bad thing. And it's such a shame, because there was room for maybe another page or two to truly wrap this section of the book up and lead into the second volume for those readers who wanted more. For me, although I liked Bree and the friends she made along the way, I won't be continuing the series.

It's 2023 and I am reviewing an ARC of this book I received from Netgalley in 2017 in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. It's been a long time coming, with other review books getting prioritised over this one, the actions of which I regret. I'm working through my old ARCs because I feel bad for never getting to them.

Seem to have requested this book accidentally, and no longer wish to read the novel. Rating it as 3 stars for a neutral rating.

I have not had the time or interest to get through this book, unfortunately. I requested based on the author and would love to get to it eventually.

I'm too scared to write this review. Anything I say will not completely tell you how much I enjoyed reading this story.

Yes, you will see a lot of the plot twists coming, but you will still keep reading. You will hang onto every word that Jennifer wrote so beautifully. Crafting a world that you will want to get lost in. You will get frustrated and you will want to shake some of the characters for their choices.

Breena is a strong-willed main protagonist with a true heart, quick temper and brave face. She is not this way just because, but because this is how she was taught to be by her Da.

Then there is Treacle and Aleta - I really hope that they get to play an even bigger role in the second installment, they enrich the story and give depth to the plot. I enjoy the friendship that is slowly blossoming between Breena and Aleta, dispite every reason they have to hate each other.

Prince Caden, here's another big reason to love the story. Believe me, he will crawl into your heart fast and you will keep him there as long as possible. He is everything good that his father is not (is all I'll be saying here).

This will be the perfect read for young readers who loves Avatar - Last Airbender...

We do get some romance, but this story does not revolve around it, or being saved by a man, and I love Jennifer for it. Portraying strong women who fight for themselves are rare to find. And these ladies are flawed too. No perfection will be found here.

The only reason why this book is not getting 5 stars is because of the predictable plot and some small grammatical errors (and typing errors). I thoroughly enjoyed the writing, and the story and will not hesitate to continue with this series!

DNF at 31%. From what i have read so far the book was not bad. I liked the plot and the characters so far but it is not interesting enough. The book is written in a way that drags all the action scenes.

The blurb for this book had me immediately interested to read it.

I did find that even though it was interesting, I had difficulty getting into the story and there were a few times I almost put it down and didn’t pick it back up again.

But I continued to read it and while It was well written and intriguing, this book just wasn’t for me- although I have no doubt many other readers will find this a great novel.

#Netgalley #ThreatsofSkyandSea
I cannot say enough about Jennifer Ellision. The writing of all her novels is top notch. The story does not slow down and you cannot put it down. I read her other series. They are all page turners. Plan to stay up late!

I really enjoyed this one..
Bree is an average peasant girl working with her father in their tavern. One day she stumbles into some of the Kings elementals and it forever changes her life. She is forced into a noble life she never expected and with that comes threats against her and her father. It also shows her that her whole life was nothing but secrets. She has to find a way to save herself and her da' before the king uses them to further his power.
Hope you all enjoy this book as much as I did.
Happy reading!

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own**

This book was absolutely amazing!
The cliffhanger at the end though....you can't be doing that to a girls soul.

I love the concept of the Elementals. Even though it's a concept that had been done before, I always love a new perspective on it.

The characters were portrayed extremely well. I loved that the female characters were strong, had their own mind, and never once said anything about wanting/needing a man.
There wasn't a backbone of romance in this book. A lot of books like this tend to have the female needing a male character to help her get through whatever it is that is happening, the women in this book have got it all under control...ish. There is a small hint of romance between some of the main characters, but it doesn't overwhelm the story, which I liked.

I did feel that the beginning of the story moved a little fast. The timeline just seemed to skip forward a lot (mostly when Breena and her father are being taken to the king).

Overall, this book was great! I can't wait for the next one in the series!

The writing is good, even though the dialogue isn't amazing. But the atmosphere is so strong, and the world is so interesting. It's a bit limited and I would've liked to know more, but I suppose the other books in the series will expand upon that.

I love how the author combines secrets, romance, magic, and a generous splash of historical-like royalty systems. The plot is so fast-paced, so exciting, and there are some amazing twists at the end. I was so entertained.

The characters are lovable. Aleta and Bree's friendship is terrific, Bree's relationship with her father is beautiful, and I adore the squad: Bree (the brave, passionate heroine), Caden (the noble, kind hearted Prince), Tregle (the servant boy who is oh such a cinnamon roll) and Aleta (the fierce girl whose hard exteriour hides inner pain). I can't wait to see how their friendships develop over the course of the series.

I started this last night, and woke up and immediately resumed reading. I found the story engaging and very intruging. Bree was likeable MC and one I personally enjoyed getting a glimpse into. Bree's relationships are also written in a "true" way. In the way that they do develop as normal relationships would, and that there are sometimes weird stuff happening. I would also say Bree is extremely resourceful and knows how to use her mind! I love it when the heroine can actually think for herself and do rational stuff. The book is 360 pages which for this story felt just right. I'm also 100% sure I'm gonna pick up the next book, just have to read a bit more in TBR pile!

I've seen some people compare it to Throne of Glass, which it absolutely deserves. I found this book as good as Throne of Glass. Not the same story, at all in the end but absolutely one I would recommend to check out.

I really enjoyed this one and can’t wait for the next one. The cruelty of the bad guys is unmatched and the tension between the characters is so vivid. It’s a slow burn romance with magic, and court games. For a long introduction it was really good. The cliffhanger at the end was pure evil though. I wasn’t expecting that at all.

A clever fantasy novel with a great story and developed characters!